Describes a course on social inequality that utilizes service learning. Expounds that the writing intensive focus enables students to reflect on their service learning experience, integrate the experience with course work, and relate the experience to their lives. Finds that service learning fosters the students' sense of empathy and…

Studies by Tufts University's Center on Hunger and Poverty show conclusive links between nutrition and children's cognitive development. Cognitive defects can result from complex interactions between malnutrition and "environmental insults" that come from living in poverty. Poor nutrition has longterm consequences. Print and web…

Common-school reformists advocated a common curriculum, state financial support and control, a professional teaching force, a social-reform component addressing crime and poverty, and the Americanization of immigrants. This article examines past and possible manifestations of common-school philosophy in contemporary school settings. (Contains 25…

Examines the relationship of social and cultural resources and teachers' perception of ability to the educational aspirations of African American eighth graders. Results indicate that discussions with parents about school or careers, participation in activities outside of school, parental involvement, and parents' expectations were positively…

Are England's Education Action Zones an innovative approach to combating educational underachievement in disadvantaged areas? An examination of the EAZ director's role and functions shows it is possible for zones to pursue a more broadly based, innovative, and longer-term strategy for delivering government-mandated improvements. (MLH)

Collected data from four urban neighborhoods to explore whether citizen participation in urban governance was fostered by civic culture and local political institutions. Although citizen participation was least likely to occur in poor neighborhoods demonstrating lower educational attainment levels, such factors could be mitigated by political…

Examined relationship between parenting style and adolescent functioning among African American adolescent girls and their mothers living in impoverished neighborhoods. Found that teens whose mothers were disengaged (low on both parental warmth and supervision/monitoring) had the most negative outcomes related to externalizing and internalizing…

At the Rural Studio--an off-campus program of Auburn University--architectural students use scavenged and donated materials to create innovative houses and other buildings for poor, rural, primarily African American communities. Materials such as hay bales and old tires are recycled to create full-blown modern architecture, which also fulfills…

Despite UK government initiatives intended to address social exclusion, those with poor access to social and economic resources continue to experience unresponsive services. In these circumstances, small inter-agency projects may offer accessible alternatives. This article explores the implementation of inter-agency work at a local level, focusing…

In this article, the author describes how Superintendent Jimmy Cunningham recognized the moment he parted ways with his urban colleagues on just how school funding should be meted out in Arkansas. The Arkansas Supreme Court had declared the state's school funding system unconstitutional so the Arkansas Association of School Administrators had…

Drawing on the notion of linked lives, this study examined the effects of stability and change in maternal circumstance on developmental trajectories of antisocial behavior in children 4 to 7 years of age. Using data from a national sample of young mothers and growth curve analysis, the study demonstrated that early maternal circumstances…

MENC has recently, recapitulated its vision of "Music for All" in its strategic plan, which warns that "30 to 50 per cent of new teachers who work in urban areas leave the field in their first three years of service.'' This undoubtedly affects instrumental music instruction for urban children. Collegial sharing is one solution to problems…

Everyone can understand the challenges teachers face in organizing and supervising field trips, challenges that are even greater when the students have special needs and live in poverty. But how daunting, the authors ask, are the challenges these students face every day? Very few people who have never tried it are truly aware of all the…

Schools that fail to make "adequate yearly progress" under NCLB face sanctions and may lose students to other schools. In smaller schools, random yearly variation in innate student ability and behavior can cause changes in scores that are beyond the influence of teachers. This study examines changes in reading and math scores across…

The experience of poverty has a pervasive impact on the health (including mental health) of children and their parent(s), on family functioning and on the life course of children. The aim of this paper is to consider the relevance of poverty to our understanding of the health (and mental health) of children with intellectual disabilities in the…